Chapter 316

Judy’s POV

When I came downstairs, Nan was waiting in the front parlor, scrolling through her phone. She looked up when she heard me approaching, and a soft smile spread across her face. She looked me over for a moment, an approving look in her eyes.

I was wearing waist-high jeans that hugged my legs tightly, showing off my curves, and a white crop top that rested just below my breasts.

“You look hot,” Nan said, wiggling her brows and making me laugh. I shake my head at her as I grab my purse off the counter.

Soon, I won’t be able to wear this stuff. I hadn’t told Nan about my pregnancy yet, and I wasn’t sure when the right time would be. Nan followed after me as I made my way to the front door. When I pulled it open, I paused when I saw Erik standing outside. I frowned and folded my arms across my chest.

“Did he have you stand guard? Like he’s afraid I’d take off without you?” I asked, narrowing my eyes at him.

He shrugged, giving me a boyish grin.

“You know Alpha Landry just worries,” he told me. “He always has. Besides, it could be worse. You could be stuck with a different Gamma. At least I’m your friend.”

I tried my best to roll my eyes and appear unaffected, but if I were to say I wished it were someone else, that would be a lie. I liked Erik; he had become my friend over the last couple of years. He was someone I knew I could trust, and plus, he was great company when it came down to it.

“Hey, Erik,” Nan said as she stepped past him and walked towards the waiting car.

“Sup, Nan,” Erik said with a wink before looking back at me. “He just cares about you, Judy. Plus, I have a feeling you are going to be our Luna soon, and it’s common for a Luna to have her own personal bodyguard.”

I narrowed my eyes at him.

“I’m also a Gamma and I can handle myself,” I told him firmly. I knew I was just being stubborn. In all reality, I was grateful that I had Erik around. Now that my body was softer than it normally was and I was carrying a baby in my belly, I wasn’t so sure if I could handle myself if things went south.

“Maybe so,” he said with a shrug. “Then think of me as your partner. Even the strongest Gamma could use some backup once in a while.”

I studied him for a moment; I knew he was just doing his job, and he was very good at his job, or else Gavin would have fired him a long time ago. Even when he thought that Erik was into me, he still kept him around because Erik was the best at what he did.

“You’re right,” I finally relented. “I’m just being difficult. I’m sorry.”

It was these damn pregnancy hormones; it was making me all sorts of crazy. It’s not like I could tell Erik that detail, though, so I just walked past him and followed Nan to the car. We both got into the backseat while Erik got into the front driver’s seat.

“So, where to?” He asked, glancing at me from the rearview mirror.

“The Redmoon Packhouse. We are meeting my parents there,” I told him.

He nodded and threw the car into drive. Nan was scrolling through her phone as the car moved forward, and when I glanced at her screen, I smiled. She was looking through the photos she took of Emalyn, a small smile placed on her face.

“I can’t believe you are a mom now,” I told her, nudging her lightly on the shoulder.

She glanced at me, a flush to her cheeks, which oddly enough made her look younger.

“It still feels unreal,” she admitted. “I’m not entirely sure what I’m doing yet. But Chester is so good at being a dad. It’s like he was born for that role.”

“You’ll get good, too,” I assured her. “You’re new at this, and honestly, we never even talked about it before. We’ve been friends forever, and yet, I have no idea if you even want to be a mom.”

She nibbled on her lower lip, her cheeks growing redder.

“I always wanted to be a mom,” she admitted. “I wanted to be a better mom than the mom that I had.”

Nan’s mom died when she was a teenager, and from what I remember and from what Nan had told me, she wasn’t a very good Mom. I remembered attending Nan’s 14(th) birthday party, and she was so excited to have her entire family together to celebrate her. Later that night, I stayed with her while she cried because her mom never showed up. She never even sent her a happy birthday text, which gutted her even more. A few weeks later, she was sent an expensive diamond bracelet from her mother as a late birthday present.

Nan pretended that she was okay after that, and she wore the bracelet every single day. But I knew her better than that; I knew the sadness that lingered in her eyes and the heartbreak she was facing daily because of her own mother.

Her mother died when Nan was 16, and her father developed a terrible drinking problem. They were divorced at that point, but he still loved her. I mean, she was his fated mate after all. The problem was, despite the mate bond they shared, her mother still slept around with other men, and it completely destroyed her father. He drowned himself in work and barely paid Nan any attention. Though, at least he showed up to her birthdays and other important events. But after her mother passed away, that stopped altogether. All he cared about was drinking away his life and forgetting the fact that he had a daughter.

She spent the rest of her teenage life taking care of him, despite his constant drunken abuse and slander. I tried to get her to walk away and to live with me and my family, but she refused to leave her father behind.

Family was family after all.

She stayed with him until the day she got accepted to college. Even then, she still remained in that house, taking care of him all while studying and trying to be a good student. I helped her as much as I could, but I could only do so much while working on my own goals.

Then, one day, after one too many beers, her father took things too far. He blamed Nan for her mother leaving him in the first place because, apparently, her mother never wanted kids, and Nan was an accident baby. He blamed Nan for the fact that her mother always stayed away and was never happy in the Redmoon pack… and apparently, she cheated on Nan’s father with one of Nan’s daycare workers, which was the first time she cheated. So, Nan’s father held a grudge against Nan for pretty much ruining his life. Nan didn’t know any of that stuff until that day he drank far more than he normally does.

Nan was devastated and tried to plead her case against her father, but he was too far gone. He hit her, bruising her cheek and almost breaking her nose. I had just shown up, so Nan and I could go to school together, and I heard glass breaking. I heard Nan screaming out in pain, and I ran in to help her. I found her father standing over her with a broken shard of glass, like he was about to stab her.

I was a year into my professional gamma training, but I had years of amateur experience under my belt.

Needless to say, I kicked his ass and got Nan the hell out of there. I only faced some minor damage; he managed to cut me slightly on the arm from the glass he was holding.

After I told my father what had happened, he brought it up to our Alpha at the time, and he ended up banishing Nan’s father, turning him into a rogue. Nan ended up living in the campus dorms, working two jobs, until she could afford her own apartment. Eventually, her first job at the Carter Resort promoted her, and she was making enough money to cover her bills without needing a second job.

We aren’t entirely sure, but we think Nan’s father was the reason for that rogue attack that ended the lives of both our Alpha and Luna, along with many others. It was one of the worst attacks that we’ve ever had. Rogue attacks are a rarity because no one would be stupid enough to go against a Lycan. So, no one was really prepared for this attack.

Gavin doubled the security after that attack and ended the lives of all the rogues involved. I’m not sure if Nan’s father was amongst them, but I think secretly, Nan believed that he was.

She barely talks about her family anymore, and I never bring it up. But seeing her smiling at baby Emalyn’s photos makes my heart swell knowing that she’s creating her own little family. I know she’s going to be a better mom than hers was, and Chester was going to be a great dad.

I wrap an arm around her and pull her into me.

“I love you,” I say to her. “I’m always going to be here whenever you need it.”

She smiled.

“I know,” she said back. “And I love you too.”

We pulled up to the packhouse, and Erik turned off the engine. My mother and father had just arrived as well and were getting out of their car.

“Ready to meet your new Alpha?” I asked her, glancing at Nan.

She took a deep breath; I knew she was nervous because this pack hadn’t had great luck with Alphas. The last one was an asshole who thrived on power and the Luna was money hungry. Nobody was sad that they died, but they were worried about who would be the next Alpha.

It’s been a few years since that happened, and Gavin still won’t appoint a new Alpha until now. All the candidates so far sucked and it worried Nan, along with everyone else, that this pack would never have a decent Alpha.

She finally nodded.

“Yes,” she said softly. “Let’s go.”